This study presents the thesis that religious cleavages in Lebanon have been the major factor behind most of the country's problems since the achievement of independence in 1943. The coming of the Palestinians in 1948 and in the 1970s upset Lebanon's delicate sociopolitical balance between Christians and Muslims in favor of the latter. The study's four chapters describe the origins of Lebanon's religious groups, the arrival of the Palestinians, Lebanon's emergence as the sole Palestinian guerrilla base, and the outbreak and aftermath of the Lebanese civil war of 1975-1976. Finally, suggestions are made for the resolution of the continuing Christian-Muslim conflict, notably the alternatives of federalism and confederalism as possible future political arrangements for Lebanon.

The theology of John Calvin, while not differing primarily in substance from traditional Reformation thought, was revolutionary in its impact on the cultural life of the believer. For Calvin, Christ was the Cosmic Redeemer through whom all of life was effected. Nothing in the life of the believer therefore was secular. Society, as a whole, was but a reflection of the grace of God and hence was an arena of concern for all people. Consequently, Calvin, the man, and Calvinists, later took an active role in the temporal life of man, concerning themselves with the governing of the state as well as the church, and the propagation of the arts and sciences.

The decade of the 1850s saw the Texas press separate into two opposing groups on the issue of filibustering. The basis for this division was the personal beliefs of the editors regarding the role filibustering should have in society. Although a lust for wealth drove most filibusters, the press justified territorial expansion along altruistic lines. By 1858, however, a few newspapers discarded this argument and condemned filibusters as lawless bands of ruffians plundering peaceful neighbors. Throughout the decade, the papers gradually drifted from a consensus in 1850 to discord by the date of William Walker's third attempt on Nicaragua in 1858.

This thesis concludes that (1) Immediately following the July Revolution, the Paris government refused to concede the right of search to British commanders. (2) Due to France's isolation in 1831-1833, she sought British support by negotiating the conventions of 1831 and 1833. (3) In response to Palmerston's insistence and to preserve France's influence Sdbastiani signed the protocol of a five-power accord to suppress the slave trade. Guizot accepted the Quintuple Treaty to facilitate an Anglo-French rapprochement. (4) Opposition encouraged by the Webster-Ashburton Treaty, however, forced Guizot to repudiate this new agreement. (5) As a concession to Guizot,Aberdeen dropped the demand for a mutual right of search and negotiated the Convention of 1845, establishing a system of joint-cruising.